Method of playing a poker game

ABSTRACT

A poker variation game involving multiple wagers and the utilization of a wild card. Cards are dealt by the dealer, two cards face down to each player and one community wild card dealt face up. Players inspect their cards and determine whether to fold, or to make a second bet. The variation provides the improvements of allowing the rank of the wild card to be different for every deal, and provides that each player gets at least one wild card on every hand. All bets are ultimately resolved according to a predetermined payout schedule.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This Application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/259,935 filed on Jan. 8, 2001.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention relates to a method for playing a poker variation card game involving the utilization of a wild card and multiple wagers. The game can be played with a standard deck of cards or by video machine technology in a casino or home environment. In particular, it relates to a method for playing a wagering game, wherein the game is a variation of stud poker and provides players with the opportunity to determine when additional wagers will be made. Further, the particular invention provides the improvements of allowing the wild card rank to be different for every deal, and of giving each player at least one wild card every hand.

[0004] 2. Background Art

[0005] There are numerous wagering games used for gambling. Such games should be simple to understand, yet exciting to play, and should give the player the opportunity to determine when they will make successive wagers. The addition of a wild card that the player can use to symbolize any other card increases the player's excitement. Exciting play, the opportunity that the wild card rank may change for every hand, the ability to determine when they will wager certain bets, and the ability to have at least one wild card on every deal, all contribute to enhance the player's interest and enjoyment of the game.

[0006] Gambling games intended primarily for play in a casino setting, should provide players with an enhanced sense of participation and control, the opportunity to make decisions that affect the outcome of their wager, and a reasonable chance of winning, despite the odds being in favor of the casino or house. Wagering games that utilize the concept of common or community cards to complete a player's hand are known (See generally “Scarnes Encyclopedia of Games”, John Scarne, Harper & Row, 1973. Wagering games, including wagering games for casino play, with multiple wagering opportunities are also known. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,861,041 and 5,087,405 (both to Jones et al.) disclose methods and apparatus for progressive jackpot gaming, respectively. The former patent discloses that a player may make an additional wager at the beginning of a hand, the outcome of the additional wager being determined by a predetermined arrangement of cards in the player's hand. U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,553 (to Suttle and Jones) discloses a modified version of a five card stud poker game. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,081 (to Breeding), which discloses that a player may make a wager at the beginning of a hand and then later retrieve a portion of the wager. Also, additional symbols may be added to the usual means of playing a game to increase wagering opportunities. This is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,107 (to Boylan et al). Similar as to the foregoing see also U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,430 (to Aramapakul et al) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,725,216 (to Jones). U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,907 (to Wells) discloses that a player may disregard usual discard rules to declare an immediate winner determined by predetermined arrangements of cards in the player's hand.

[0007] The desired attributes of wagering games outlined above are in large measure provided by the method and apparatus for a wagering game in accordance with the present invention. The game is uncomplicated, exciting, and provides the player with the opportunity to determine when they will make successive wagers. More significantly, the present invention provides the improvements that the wild card rank may change for every hand and that the player will receive at least one wild card on every deal.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The wagering game of the present invention is played with a single, standard fifty-two card poker deck and broadly involves the generally well recognized and accepted set of rules and procedures relative to stud and hold'em poker when a wild card is utilized. The present invention is a method for playing a poker variation card game involving multiple wagers. The object of the game is for each player to combine the four cards from the player's hand with the community wild card in front of the dealer to create a winning poker hand. Players do not play against other players or against the dealer.

[0009] The game method comprises each player making an initial ante to participate in the game. When offered, all players may also place an additional $1 bonus bet in the area marked bonus. Following the shuffle and cut, cards are dealt by a dealer, two down to each player and a community wild card is placed in front of the dealer. During each hand the community wild card and any card of the same rank in a player's hand are wild, and shall be considered to be of whatever suit and rank that will give the player the highest poker hand.

[0010] After a player has received two cards, and the wild card has been determined the player has the option to either play or fold. If the player does not believe that the player's initial two cards when combined with the community wild card and the two additional player cards to be dealt to the player will lead to a winning poker hand, the player may place both of the player's initial two cards in the area marked “FOLD” and surrender the player's initial ante and any bonus bet.

[0011] If the player wishes to continue play on the hand and receive two more cards from the dealer, the player must place, in the area marked “BET”, an additional bet exactly equal to twice the amount of the player's ante.

[0012] After all players have made their choice to either play, by making the double bet, or to fold, the dealer will deal two additional cards to each player that has made a bet. The dealer will then examine each of the player's hands and determine the highest poker hand held by each player when the player's four cards are combined with the community wild card. The dealer then determines what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wagers and the pre-determined payout schedule. Payouts are made to players with winning hands and the losing wagers are collected.

[0013] On all winning hands the player is paid 1 to 1 on the amount of the player's ante, and the bet is paid according to the payout schedule posted at the game table. The dealer will also determine for all players with a winning hand and who also made the additional $1 bonus bet, what bonus payment, if any, that player is entitled to receive according to the pre-determined bonus bet payout schedule posted at the game table.

[0014] Apparatus is disclosed for playing the wagering game according to the method outlined above. A typical gaming table, with a playing surface, is modified to include specific areas that provide locations for placing the wagers (ante, bet, and bonus), folded hands, and for displaying the community wild card. A display devise may be associated with the apparatus for displaying game information.

[0015] It is an object of the present invention to provide an exciting and interesting wagering game that is easy to learn and that is largely based on stud and hold'em poker principals as modified when a wild card is utilized.

[0016] It is another object of the present invention to provide new variations and improvements to known wagering games by both allowing the wild card rank to be different for every deal, and by providing that each player has at least one wild card every hand. These improvements are made while still providing the player with the opportunity to determine when additional wagers will be made.

[0017] Still another object of the present invention is to provide a wagering game that is easy to learn, yet demands skill of players in making strategic decisions about when and upon which cards to make second bets. A further object of the present invention is to provide a unique, exciting card game for play in casinos or at home and on various media including casino tables, video poker machines, video lottery terminals or home computers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018]FIG. 1 depicts the table layout and apparatus used in playing the wagering game of the present invention,

[0019]FIG. 2 depicts an individual player's game board on the table layout, and

[0020]FIG. 3 is a block diagram representing the flow of play in the game.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] The Preferred Embodiment or Best Mode of Use is as follows:

[0022] Referring to FIG. 1, the apparatus for the wagering game of the present invention includes a typical casino gambling or gaming table 10. The table 10 has a curved side 11 for accommodating six to seven players and a straight side 12 for accommodating the dealer. The table 10 has a flat surface 13 covered with felt or other appropriate material. Although six playing positions or locations 14 a-f for individual players are provided, it is not essential to the game that exactly six persons play and as many as twelve players may participate. For casino play, a maximum of six or seven players provides for a game that is easily manageable by the dealer and house, and one in which the individual players feel more involved. A house dealer position 15, including an area suitable for displaying the community wild card 16, is provided.

[0023] Referring to FIG. 2, the player's game board consists of two primary and one secondary, separate and distinct wagering or betting areas, the Ante 21 the Bet 22 and the optional Bonus 24. Each player position also includes an area for the player to “Fold” 23 and a printed pre-determined payout schedule 25.

[0024] Referring to the flow diagram of FIG. 3, the initial step in playing the game of the present invention is preparing or shuffling a standard deck of cards represented at block 30. Next, each player will make an initial wager, block 31, by placing a bet in the betting area marked “Ante”, 21 on the player's game board. After each player has placed a wager the cards are dealt by a dealer, block 32, two cards being dealt face down to each player and one community wild card is placed face up in front of the dealer in area 16. The first player to receive cards is the player to the left of the dealer.

[0025] After each participating player has received two cards and the community wild card has been determined each player has the option to either Bet or Fold, block 33. If the player believes that the player cannot make a winning hand, the player may place both cards in the card area marked “Fold”, 23, and surrender the player's ante, 21 and any bonus bet, 24. If the player wishes to continue to play the hand, the player must place a second wager, exactly equal to twice the amount of the initial ante, in the area marked “Bet”, 22.

[0026] After all players have made their choice to either play or fold, the dealer will deal two additional cards to each player that has made a Bet, block 34. The dealer will then examine each player's hand and determine the highest poker hand held by each player when the player's four cards are combined with the community wild card, block 35. The community wild card and any card of the same rank in the players' hand are wild, and shall be considered to be of whatever suit and rank that will give the player the highest poker hand.

[0027] The dealer then determines what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wagers and the pre-determined payout schedule, block 36. On all winning hands the player is paid 1 to 1 on the amount of the player's ante, and the bet is paid according to the payout schedule, 25 posted at the game table.

[0028] A typical payout schedule is as follows: Payout Schedule Ante is Paid 1 to 1 on all winning hands The Bet is paid as follows: Natural Royal Flush 1000 to 1   Four Wilds 100 to 1  Wild Royal Flush 20 to 1  Five of a Kind 10 to 1  Straight Flush 5 to 1 4 of a Kind 3 to 2 Full House 3 to 2 Flush 1 to 1 Straight 1 to 2 3 of a Kind 1 to 2

[0029] In offering the present invention the retail licensee (Casino) may, but shall not be required to, offer the players the additional option of qualifying for a $1 bonus bet payout. Payer's electing to make this optional bet do so by placing a $1 bet in the betting area designated “Bonus”, 25, on the player's game board. This additional bet qualifies the player to win a bonus payout on that hand. Bonus payouts, when offered, are paid to the player in addition to the regular ante and bet payouts.

[0030] Player hands qualifying for the Bonus Jackpot shall be paid according to a pre-determined Bonus payout schedule, which shall be prominently posted at the table:

[0031] A typical bonus payout schedule is as follows: Bonus Payout Schedule Natural Royal Flush 5000 to 1   Four Wilds 400 to 1  Wild Royal Flush 100 to 1  Five of a Kind 25 to 1  Straight Flush 10 to 1  4 of a Kind 3 to 1 Full House 2 to 1 Flush 2 to 1 Straight PUSH 3 of a Kind PUSH 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of playing a poker variation card game involving multiple wagers using a single standard deck of cards, with said game involving standard poker hand rankings when a wild card is utilized and comprising the steps of: each player placing a wager to participate in the game; a dealer dealing cards face down to each player and at least one community card face up for use by all participating players; restricting all participating players to the option to either play or fold; requiring all players who wish to continue to play a hand to make a second bet exactly equal to twice the amount of the players initial wager; a dealer dealing additional cards to each player that has made a bet; determining the highest poker hand held by each player; determining what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wagers and the pre-determined payout schedule.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the community wild card and any card of the same rank in the players' hand are wild.
 3. The method according to claim 1, providing that each player will have at least one wild card on every hand.
 4. The method according to claim 2, allowing the rank of the community wild card to be different for every deal.
 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the community wild card and any card of the same rank in the players' hand shall be considered to be of whatever suit and rank that will give the player the highest poker hand.
 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the participating players are not playing against each other or against the dealer.
 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein each player shall have the option to wager an additional bonus bet.
 8. The method according to claim 7, of resolving players bonus bets comprising the steps of: determining which players, if any, have made a bonus bet wager; determining the highest poker hand held by each player; determining what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wager and the pre-determined bonus payout schedule.
 9. The method according to claim 1 and providing apparatus for playing the game, said apparatus including a playing surface having wager receiving areas, a discard area, and a common card-receiving area for receiving and showing the community card.
 10. A method of playing a poker variation card game involving multiple wagers using a single standard deck of cards, with said game involving standard poker hand rankings when a wild card is utilized and comprising the steps of: each player placing a wager to participate in the game; a dealer dealing two cards face down to each player and one community card face up for use by all participating players as a wild card; restricting all participating players to the option to either play or fold; requiring all players who wish to continue to play a hand to make a second bet exactly equal to twice the amount of the players initial wager; a dealer dealing two additional cards to each player that has made a bet; determining the highest poker hand held by each player when the player's four cards are combined with the community wild card; determining what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wagers and the pre-determined payout schedule.
 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the community wild card and any card of the same rank in the players' hand are wild.
 12. The method according to claim 10, providing that each player will have at least one wild card on every hand.
 13. The method according to claim 11, allowing the rank of the community wild card to be different for every deal.
 14. The method according to claim 10, wherein the community wild card and any card of the same rank in the players' hand shall be considered to be of whatever suit and rank that will give the player the highest poker hand.
 15. The method according to claim 10, wherein the participating players are not playing against each other or against the dealer.
 16. The method according to claim 10, wherein each player shall have the option to wager an additional one-dollar bonus bet.
 17. The method according to claim 16, of resolving players bonus bets comprising the steps of: determining which players, if any, have made a one-dollar bonus bet wager; determining the highest poker hand held by each player when the player's four cards are combined with the community wild card; determining what payout, if any, each player is entitled to receive according to that player's wager and the pre-determined bonus payout schedule.
 18. The method according to claim 10 and providing apparatus for playing the game, said apparatus including a playing surface having wager receiving areas, a discard area, and a common card-receiving area for receiving and showing the community wild card. 